It's like eating the rainbow: Fresh-fruit layer cake

Michelle is the author of the food craft blog, Sugar Swings, where she shares many sugar-inspired treats which are sprinkled with a lot geek and pop culture. Michelle is a working pharmacist and mom of three kiddos, so when not making tr...

A healthier cake is a good excuse to eat two slices, isn't it?

Do you love all the beautiful, colorful, rainbow layer cakes that are taking over Pinterest these days? I love them too, but as much as I enjoy seeing all those pretty layers, I often think about how to re-create them using natural colors. Fresh fruit is a perfect alternative, as it also comes in a rainbow of colors.

Buy up all the farmers market fruit this summer, and make a rainbow layer "cake."

This cake uses cantaloupe, watermelon, pink grapefruit, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, peaches, kiwi fruit and green grapes, but you could use almost any of your favorite fruits.

Cut each fruit into thin slices, and layer them one on top of the other in cake pans.

Add a final layer of Cool Whip (whipped cream would work too).

Simply freeze the "cakes," and then pop them out of the cake pans, and stack them.

An alternative to traditional cake, but just as pretty.

Fresh-fruit rainbow layer cake recipe

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

Fresh fruit of your choice in different colors, thinly sliced

Cool Whip or whipped cream

Directions:

Line two 6-inch round cake pans with parchment paper, and spray the sides with nonstick cooking spray.

Lay the slices of fruit (1 fruit at a time) into layers. Try to make all the layers the same thickness.

Leave room at the top of 1 of your cake pans to add a layer of Cool Whip. This will be the top of your cake.

Freeze both cake pans for at least 2 hours or until the fruit is very frozen.

To remove the fruit layers from the pans, first add warm to hot water to a shallow baking dish. Place the cake pan into the dish so that most of it is submerged in the water bath. Leave it there for 2 to 3 minutes, and then immediately flip the pan over a cutting board. When the fruit cake pops out onto the cutting board, immediately put it onto another plate, and freeze it again until you are ready to assemble your final cake. Do the same for second cake layer.

Once both layers are out of the pans, place the Cool Whip-topped layer on top of the other layer.

Keep frozen, and when ready to serve, take the cake out of the freezer, and allow it to sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes. Use a very sharp knife to cut it into slices, and serve.